Gravity Falls AU - Ghost of Memories
by FacelessTwins
Summary: This was a story request by Barbacar. In this Alternate Universe, Mabel doesn't survive Weirdmageddon, but returns as a ghost in order to help Stan regain the memories he lost.
1. Chapter One - The Sweet Release of Death

_**Chapter One -** The Sweet Release of Death_

Bill re-entered the main room of his triangular prison, holding Dipper and Mabel in his hand "Alright, Ford. Time's up." Dipper and Mabel struggle to escape the one eyed demons grip "I've got the kids." Stan and Ford's eyes widen in terror. Mabel and Dipper continued to attempt to escape the demons grip; their efforts all in vain "I think I'm gonna kill one of 'em now just for the heck of it!" said Bill, moving his hand so that he could get a better look at the kids.

He blinked, his pupil forming into a pine tree "EENIE…" He blinked again, his pupil turning into a shooting star "MEENIE…" He blinked, his pupil forming a pine tree "MINEE…" The twins turned to face Bill, fear in their eyes, dread forming in their stomachs. Bill blinked one last time, his pupil taking the shape of a shooting star "YOU!" Bill held up his free hand and snapped his fingers. Before Ford or Stan could say anything, it was too late. Mabel's screams echoed in the room, bouncing off the walls.

Stan covered his ears, tears forming in his eyes, but he dare not speak. If he did their last hope of stopping this demon would be foiled. Stan wanted to scream, he wanted to yell, he wanted to swear and curse the triangle demon who killed one of the few people that he loved, he wanted to punch something; he wanted to pray that this was just a dream, that Mabel was still alive and smiling, that she was still being cheerful and happy, making his day less dull with her laughter and jokes… But that wasn't real. Stan blinked back the tears.

Ford whimpered, swallowing a lump in his throat and blinking back tears; he wanted to forget. He wanted to go back in time and stop himself from ever meeting this demon that has ruined his life. He wanted to tell his past self to reunite with his brother, that the fight was just over something stupid. He wanted to just hit reset and make all of this go away, but this wasn't a video game, this was real life. You can never jut reset real life, no matter how badly you want to. Dipper felt tears stream down his face, his voice catching in his throat, bottom lip quivering.

Dipper shut his eyes, not wanting to see her death. Mabel's screams echoed in his ears, making him shake with regret.

Pain. Mabel felt pain all over her body, like a thousand needles were digging into her skin. The pain grew and Mabel couldn't hold back her screaming; it just hurt so much. She wanted it to go away. She wanted the pain to just go away and she wanted to see her family again. She wanted to hear Stan's terrible jokes, Dipper's pen clicking, Wendy's comforting words, Soos' funny commentary, Ford's laugh. She wanted it all back.

Just as Mabel reached her breaking point, the pain was gone. It left her as quick as it came. She felt a massive weight being lifted from her shoulders; her body feeling as light as a feather. She opened her eyes, looking around at her surroundings; pure white. She raised an eyebrow.

"Am I... dead?" she asked, her voice echoing off of the nothingness that surrounded her. She was floating. Mabel blinked a few times "I… I can't be dead… Can I? If I am… Did Bill… Did Bill win?" Mabel suddenly grew panicked "Oh no! Grunkle Stan, Grunkle Ford, Mason! They're still… Everyone is still…" Mabel felt tears form in her eyes. She hardly ever called her brother by his real name, but when she was really scared and really worried, it would slip out. She felt her breath get caught in her throat. She squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn't be dead, she just couldn't' be. If she was dead… What happened to the others? Did Bill kill them too? Did Bill win? Did… Did Weirdmageddon go global? Mabel whimpered, feeling a wave of extreme guilt wash over her "This is all my fault… If I hadn't made that stupid deal… Hadn't been so selfish…" Mabel whipped her eyes with her sleeve as tears made their way down her cheeks. "Maybe… Maybe none of this would have happened… I deserve this…"

Mabel put her hands over her eyes and quietly wept. Soon, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around, feeling startled at the sudden contact. She was met with a familiar face "W-Wendy?" she stuttered.

Wendy smiled "Hey, dude," she greeted. "I'm not actually Wendy though, more like a memory of her," said the memory of Wendy.

"Wait… So… Where am I?" Mabel asked.

Wendy grinned "You're in purgatory."

Mabel raised an eyebrow "What…?"

Wendy snapped her fingers. The white space formed into Mabel and Dipper's bedroom in the shack attic. Wendy sat down on the edge of Mabel's bed. She patted the spot beside her "Come. Take a seat."

Mabel hesitantly walked over to the bed, taking a seat "So… What is this place?" she asked, looking up at Wendy.

Wendy smiled softly "It's the place between Heaven and Hell. It's usually were the afterlife are placed for a certain amount of time until they are sent back to earth," she explained.

Mabel blinked "So, is there some way I could see what's going on now?" she asked, feeling a little ray of hope at the thought of seeing her family again.

Wendy shook her head "Not until your time is up," she said.

Mabel slumped her shoulders, feeling her eyes well up with tears as her bottom lip trembled "I'm such an idiot…" she muttered.

Wendy frowned. "Hey, don't say that."

Mabel shifted her gaze "Why does it matter what I say? It's not like you're actually Wendy," she mumbled, sounding a little more bitter then she had intended.

Wendy frowned, placing a hand on Mabel's shoulder. "I might not be the real Wendy, but I am a memory of her. Which means that I share her emotions. Wendy wouldn't want you saying that. Neither would Stan, Ford or Dipper."

Mabel whimpered, ready to burst into tears of guilt. "B-but… They would if they knew I was the one who caused this stupid apocalypse to happen in the first place." Salty tears streamed down her cheeks, her eyes red and puffy.

Wendy wrapped her arm around Mabel's shoulder, pulling her close "Hey, this wasn't all your fault. If Ford had told you about the rift you wouldn't have given it to Bill. If Bill hadn't made Ford go completely mad-brain-insane he would have trusted you enough to tell you about the rift. In the end, all the paths lead to Bill. Bill started this, and he is dead set on finishing it," Wendy explained, rubbing Mabel's arm for reassurance.

Mabel sucked in a shaky breath "But…" Wendy smiled "But nothing." She reached over to the table and took a tissue from the tissue box, handing it to Mabel.

Mabel took it whipping her tears and blowing her nose. "When… When will I be able to go back?" she asked, looking up at Wendy, who smiled softly, eyes filled with reassurance.

"Soon."

Mabel sniffled. "That reminds me… Why am I allowed to go back?" she asked.

Wendy thought for a moment "Usually people who have unfinished business stay on Earth in the afterlife."

"And when that business is finished?"

"Well… They usually go to Heaven. Sometimes Hell depending on what they did."

Mabel shivered "Will… Will I go to Hell?" she asked, swallowing a lump in her throat. Wendy shook her head "No, of course not."

"But that's not for you to decide, is it?" Wendy bit her lip "No… But, I'm sure you won't go to Hell. If worse comes too worse, you would be trapped in the mindscape."

Mabel leaned into Wendy's side "I… I want to see them again… Dipper, Stan, Ford, Soos, the real Wendy, Candy, Grenda… Even Pacifica and Gideon…"

Wendy ruffled Mabel's hair "Hey, don't worry kid. You'll see them soon. You just… Won't be alive…"

Mabel chuckled lightly "Yeah, I guess so… But… Why, out of all the people in my family, did you show up? Not to say I don't like your company or anything, it's just… Wouldn't someone more important to me show up? Like Stan or Dipper? Oh! Not to say you aren't important it's just that-"

Wendy held up a hand to silence Mabel "I get it. To answer your question, I'm not too sure myself. Maybe it's because you would have been scared to see anyone else, especially someone from your family. With the guilt that you started this whole thing consuming you at the time, you wanted the person who you knew would understand you to show up."

Mabel blinked a few times, whipping her eyes with her sleeve "I… I guess that makes since…"

Mabel sniffled "So… What do we do until my time is up?"

Wendy let out a small sigh "We wait…"


	2. Chapter Two - Grunkle Stan…?

**_Chapter Two –_** _Grunkle Stan…?_

Mabel floated beside her great uncle Stan. The wind blew past him as he blinked a few times, looking as if he was trying to get his thoughts together. Mabel sighed in relief "At least everyone made it out alive… Well… Other than me…" she said, a small, sad, smile on her face. While she was happy that her family was safe, it still hurt that she couldn't be with them.

There was a faint sound of footsteps on the grass as Dipper walked up to Stan. Stan looked so confused, so lost. Dipper placed Stan's fez on his head "Grunkle Stan, that was amazing!" Dipper exclaimed, a wide smile on his face. Stan had a confused look cross his face "Oh… Ah… Hey there… Kiddo… What's your name?" he asked.

Mabel's eyes widen "G-grunkle Stan?" she asked, her voice cracking as tears welled up in her eyes.

Dippers eyes widen, feeling tears form at the corner of his eyes. He slowly backed away from Stan, not wanting to believe that he lost two people he loved all in one day. One physically, the other mentally.

Ford placed a hand on Dippers shoulder "We had to erase his mind to defeat Bill. It's all gone," said Ford, staring down at Stan, who was looking around in a confused manner "Stan has no idea, but he did it. He saved the world. He saved me." Stan looked up at Ford, still confused. Ford knelt down in front of his brother "You're our hero, Stanley," Ford chocked out, wrapped his brother into a tight hug, tears forming in his eyes and rolling down his cheeks.

Dipper swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat, tears rolling down his cheeks.

Mabel felt her words get caught in her throat, tears rolling down her cheeks "N-no… This can't be right… This… This can't…" Mabel covered her mouth, squeezing her eyes shut. She didn't want to believe that her grunkle was gone. She didn't want to even think he was gone.

Dipper, Ford, and Soos, who had been standing by, lead Stan through the woods to the Mystery Shack. It was in tatters; broken windows, ripped up floor boards, holes in random places on the roof. It was a disaster. A melancholy aura surrounded it.

Dipper was the first to walk up the damaged and destroyed steps. He slammed his side into the door, using all his strength to break it down. After a few tries, he somehow managed to break it down, falling with the door and hitting the floor.

Everyone walked into the living room. Mabel was floating beside Stan, who's hand she desperately wanted to grab hold of. She wanted to feel the warmth and comfort, wanted to be there with them, alive, well. Wanted to know that her grunkle was okay.

Stan smiled, looking around at the destroyed living room "Hey, this is a real nice place you got here," he said.

There was a low crack of a piece of wood breaking off of what remained of the ceiling and landing on the floor.

Dipper frowned "It's your place, grunkle Stan," he said, disparity trying to get Stan to remember "Don't you remember?" he asked "Even a little?" Dipper looked around the room, searching for something that might jog Stan's memory.

Stan walked over to his recliner and sat down in it "Nope," he replied, stretching out his legs and making himself more comfortable "But this chair hugs my butt like it remembers," he said, letting out a comfortable sigh. Stan looked up at everyone else, taking note of the sad faces they wore as they stared at him "Hey, why the long faces?" he asked, pointing to them "You guys look like it's someone's funeral," he said. He leaned in, covering the side of his mouth with his hand "Who's that big guy crying in the corner?" he asked in a hushed tone, gesturing towards Soos.

Soos turned away, sobbing quietly.

"We saved the world, but what's the point? Grunkle Stan's not himself anymore," Dipper muttered. He had never thought he'd miss having Stan acting like his usual self.

For most of the summer Dipper had thought Stan hated him. Sometimes he even doubted the memory he saw where Stan actually told Soos what he thought of him, but _now_? Now that his grunkle is gone? Mentally? He wants him _back_. He wants him back and he can't help but feel a weight inside his chest at the thought that Stan wasn't Stan anymore.

It didn't help that Mabel was gone. That just made him feel ten times as worse. He felt incomplete. Broken. Like a puzzle missing a puzzle piece.

Dipper shifted his gaze to Ford. He felt even worse for Ford. Ford had never even gotten to apologize to Stan. Not once. At least, not a _real_ apology.

Mabel ran a hand through her hair "There's gotta be something we can do to jog his memory…" she mumbled. A quite voice spoke up, sounding like Fords voice "There isn't. I'm sorry. Stan's gone."

Mabel huffed "I know my grunkle is in there somewhere. There's gotta be something around here that can help bring him back," she said, looking around at her surroundings. Mabel spotted her scrapbook tucked under some debris. Her eyes widen as an idea popped into her head "That'll work! It has to work!" Mabel floated over to it "But… How can I show them that…?"

Mabel looked around, as if trying to figure out what to do. She's going into flow blown panic mode at this point "How am I supposed to help if I can't be seen or heard? Come on… Come on…" she floated in front of Dipper "Mason, come on! You can hear me, can't you? See me? Please… I… I don't want you to lose our grunkle…. I don't want to lose our grunkel…"

Mabel looked around, taking a deep breath "Okay… What did Wendy tell you before you left?" she asked herself. She remembered the conversation she had with Wendy before she left.

 _"_ _You can communicate with people on the other side," said Wendy._

 _"_ _I can?" Mabel asked, rising an eyebrow_

 _"_ _Yes. It's different for every spirit, but they each have the ability to communicate with the outside world," Wendy explained._

 _"_ _Then… What's my ability?" Mabel asked, tilting her head to the side._

 _"_ _Glass."_

Mabel snapped her fingers "That's it!"


	3. Chapter Three - Remember?

**_Chapter Three –_** _Remember?_

Mabel floated over to what little glass remained on the windows of the shack and began to write out a message into the glass, using her finger to write out the letters. This caused cracks to form on the window, which shaped out the letters Mabel was tracing with her finger.

The continues cracking noise got Dippers attention and he looked around, searching for the source of the noise. He walked out of the room, looking over at the window to find a little message engraved in it.

 _The scrapbook! The scrapbook has to work! Read it to Stan and get his memory back!_

 _-Mabel_

Dipper felt his breath catch in his throat. He re-read the words over and over, feeling a weight form in his stomach. Mabel was here? Mabel was still alive? No, that doesn't make sense. You can't cure death.

There were small cracking noises, gaining Dippers attention.

 _Please Dipper… Trust me. I want our great uncle Stanley back…_

Dipper felt tears burn at the corners of his eyes. That was Mabel. There was no doubt now. His sister had taken on the life of a ghost. What's strange is, usually you were able to see those ghosts. So why couldn't he see Mabel?

As if Mabel had read his mind, she began to write out another message.

 _I don't want to scare Stan, and I want you guys to focus on him, not me. He's the one you should get back. Besides, I'm dead. Nothing can change that. I already feel terrible for causing the apocalypse, and I don't want anyone to lose more of their happiness because of me._

Dipper swallowed. Mabel had started the apocalypse? Dipper took a deep breath, and nodded. He had to take things into her perspective. She was sad, scared, and alone. Besides, she never trusted Bill in the first place, so it's obvious that he had possessed someone to get the rift. Dipper turned on his heels and walked back into the living room "Don't worry Mabel, I'll get our grunkle Stanley back," he mumbled.

Dipper looked around on the floor, in search of Mabel's scrapbook. He spotted it laying under some wood. He walked over to it, moved the wood out of the way, and picked up the scrapbook.

He walked over to Stan and sat down beside him on the small chair "We have to try this," said Dipper, turning to the first page of the book "Here's the first day we came to Gravity Falls, Grunkle Stan," said Dipper, pointing to a picture of Stan, Mabel, and himself standing in front of the Mystery Shack. He continued to flip through the pages as Ford, and Soos walked over to him, standing behind the chair and looking down at the book "That time we went fishing? That Summerween we spent together? Don't you remember any of it?" he asked, pointing to various pictures in the book. Stan frowned "I'm sorry," he began "I don't know what this is or who you are or –"

Stan was interrupted when Waddles jumped onto his lap, oinking with happiness that Stan was here and well. To Waddles Stan was like his replacement Mabel, and since he couldn't find Mabel, he wanted Stan for comfort.

"Gah!" Stan exclaimed "Quit it, Waddles!" he snapped, getting up from the chair. He held the pig out, away from him "I'm trying to remember my life story!" he added.

Dipper gasped "What did you just say?" he asked, eyes wide with hope "I said get _Waddles_ off of me," Stan snapped. Waddles licked Stan's cheek happily.

Ford gasped, eyes wide with hope "It's working!" he exclaimed, a smile slipping onto his lips "Keep reading," he added, placing a hand on Dipper's shoulder. Soos pointed to the book "Skip to my page!" he exclaimed, happily "He needs to remember our boss-employee relationship!" he added, an excited look on his face.

Stan adjusted his fez, with Waddles tucked under his arm "Hey, just cuz I have amnesia, don't go tryin' to give yourself a raise, Soos," he grumbled, taking a seat back down in the chair, placing Waddles on his lap.

Mabel grinned wide, floating beside Soos "It's happening! Keep going Dipper!" she said, not caring if she couldn't be heard "Get our great uncle Stanley back! We can do it!" she cheered, a wave of happiness and relief washing over her.

Dipper smiled "Okay, here we go…" he began, looking over the page he was on "Day two. Grunkle Stan smells weird, but we're starting to bond. He told us a lot about being a business man in the '80s and seemed happy when we pretended to listen…"

Stan looked down at a picture of Mabel and Dipper, with wide smiles on their faces. Stan pointed to the picture "Hold on," he cut in "Who's she?" he asked, pointing to Mabel.

Dipper smiled sadly "That's Mabel… She was your great niece," he explained. Stan frowned, looking around the room "Then where is she?" he asked.

Soos sniffled, wiping a few stray tears from his eyes. Ford shifted his gaze, swallowing. Dipper bit his bottom lip, letting out a breath "She, uh… She passed away…" he said, blinking back tears.

Stan frowned, a sad look crossing his face "O-oh…" he mumbled "I… I'm sorry…"

Dipper shook his head "It's okay," he said, giving Stan a reassuring smile "You didn't know… She would have been happy to see you. I'm sure of that."

For some reason, Stan felt a huge weight of guilt form in the pit of his stomach. He, for some reason, felt that it was his fault Mabel passed away.

 _"_ _You could have done more,"_ a voice in the back of his mind spoke up _"But you were too slow. So, you're the reason she's gone."_

Stan opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

Dipper noticed Stan and shifted his gaze from the book to his great uncle "What's wrong?" he asked. Stan blinked "It's not… My fault she's gone… Is it?" he asked, shifting his gaze to Dipper. Ford's eyes widen "No!" he quickly cut in "No, you didn't do anything wrong. If anything, it's my fault," he said, his voice lowering to a whisper.

Dipper shook his head "No. You're both wrong," he said "It was _Bills_ fault," he grumbled, feeling his grip on the scrap book tighten "It was all _Bill_ …"

"Who's Bill?" Stan asked. A rush of anger filled his mind at the name. He had no idea who Bill was, but he found that he hated him.

Dipper shook his head "For now, we should focus on getting the basic memories back," he mumbled, flipping a few pages in the scrapbook, stopping on Soos and Stan's page.

 **-O-O-O-O-**

Three weeks had passed and Stan had recovered most of his memory. There was a few pieces still missing, which Ford is going to help fill in.

Dipper was in his room with Journal 3 in his hands. After Bill was defeated, many things where restored, such as the journals that Bill had destroyed. Dipper wrote down the events in the journal, a wide smile on his face.

 _"_ _It turns out that the memory ray's effects can be undone through exposure to important images and people from your past (in the same way that McGucket began his road to recovery when he saw the tape of himself as a young inventor). The reason Stan recovered so much faster is that we began recovery while the erasure was still fresh – less than an hour after initial contact."_

Dipper paused his writing when he heard a knock on the attic door. He placed his book down, marking the page with his pen. He got off the bed and walked over to the door, opening it.

Ford stood in front of him, a smile on his face "I know you're probably busy… But… Stan and I thought that… With everything that had happened… Well…" Ford stammered, rubbing the back of his head "What I mean is… Would you like to marathon our – Stan's and my - childhood with us?" he asked. Dipper smiled, nodding his head "That'd be nice," he said.

After a few hours of the three watching Stan and Ford as kids search for the "Jersey Devil," they had fallen asleep. Ford had fallen asleep on Stan's shoulder, and Dipper had fallen asleep on Stan's lap.

Mabel smiled lightly at the scene "I love you guys," she mumbled. She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Do you have any last words?" came a voice.

Mabel turned around to find the memory of Wendy floating behind her. Mabel raised an eyebrow "That's aloud?" she asked. Wendy shrugged "Usually, no. But I'm willing to make an exception," she said. Wendy snapped her fingers "You can pick things up and use them now," she explained. Mabel smiled wide, wrapping Wendy into a tight hug "Thank you," she said. Mabel quickly let go and floated up to the ceiling, going through it to get upstairs into the attic. She floated over to the journal that was on Dippers bed and picked it up, along with the pen that marked the page Dipper had previously been writing on. She turned to the end of the book and wrote down a message.

 _To, my family, friends, and the town of Gravity Falls,_

 _Thank you… For everything. I may not be alive, but I'm glad that all of you made it out okay, and I'm glad that everyone is safe._

 _Great uncle Stanford, I'm sorry for causing the apocalypse, and I'm_ _really_ _sorry for hurting you guys… I love all of you and I wish I could go back in time and fix this, but I can't. All I ask is… Don't worry about me. I'll be okay, and I want to say that I love you guys… And I'm sorry… If I could, I would take all of you with me and we could have a ghost party or something! But, I guess this dimension thought otherwise… Heh, glcoprp googwmj fxzwg._

 _Love, Mabel_

 _P.S. Tell mom and dad that I'll miss them!_

 _P.P.S. Dipper, you were the best little (by five minutes) brother anyone could ask for, and I'm sorry for all the things that I never did for you. You sacrificed so much for me, and all I gave you in return was a thank you and an awkward sibling hug… I'll miss you, bro-bor, but I don't want to see you in the afterlife for a very, very,_ _very_ _long time. Live life to its fullest. And don't worry, if you ever feel sad or lonely, remember that you've got a whole lot of friends here in Gravity Falls._

Mabel quickly drew a doodle of herself as a ghost, smiling wide. She put the book down, and turned to face Wendy, who had followed her up to the attic "Anything else?" Wendy asked, a light smile on her face. Mabel thought for a minute then nodded "One last thing," she said. Mabel floated through the floor boards, back down to the living room. She floated over to Ford and placed a kiss on his cheek, then Stan, then Dipper. She let out a breath through her nose and turned to Wendy "Okay… I'm ready to go," she said. Wendy held out her hand "You're not scared, are you?" she asked. Mabel shook her head "No. Not one bit," she said, a smile on her face. Mabel took hold of Wendy's hand "Ready to head into the unknown?" Wendy asked. Mabel grinned "Nope."


End file.
